I just started a cake making business, but I think my prices are way to low. I usually charge $12.00 for a 9x13, $8.00 for a one layer 9", and $12.00 for a two layer 9". The kroger nexted to u charges $39.99 for a 80ct sheet cake, $28.99 for a 30-40ct, $8.99 for a 8", and $16.99 for a 10". Oh yah I have a customer who wants me to make a pooh bear cake but that means I have to order a speacial pan, so how much should that be? Please help! 
I think you are on the low side that's pretty cheap cake
wow love you are generous i wouldn't even charge that little for family and friends! No matter where you live that's not enough!!!!!! 8.00-12.00 does that even cover ingredients not even talking about time!!!! even if you are just starting you are worth more!!!
As for the pooh cake 1 you are not allowed to sale a cake make from one of those pans they are copy written. 2 if you have a a haft sheet pan and a 6" you could carve him out of that and not have to by a pan. just a thought as for cost i have only made one "pooh bear" type cake but it was carved like i said and i charged $50 even that was not enough but hard to charge people a lot when they know you are going to school to be a pastry chef they think you should be cheap 
!
Do you plan on making money? You are not charging enough at all. One wise thing I learned when I opened my business is charge what you would charge if you had a store front, that way you will know what your market can handle and can't. When I actually get to the point of opening up a store front I won't have to worry about raising my price and losing my customers.
Charge what you are worth, and make sure to pay yourself. You wouldn't work for free for someone else, why are you for yourself?
You are not in competition with grocery stores who mass produce the same designs.
Yes your cakes are priced perfectly, I need to order about 100 for this weekend and I need a discount! please!
mpc
I'm an organic baker and only do buttercream and am not even that talented at decorating (yet) and I charge $45 for an 8" two layer cake and no one bats an eye. Maybe it's where I live, but they all agree it's worth it.
The cake is CUSTOM... you pay for that. take a good look at those cakes taht you are comparing prices too... GENERIC... Plus, if you are a good baker, people will come back just because it's GOOOOOOOOD...
melissa
dont worry about what the store is doing, a professionally done cake in a cake shop is going to be more expensive than a chain store cake (and much prettier too). i've only really done cakes for my family but i still charge basically $25 for a round cake (2 layer) and i usually charge $50 total for a tiered cake (i know where they live and dont hafta worry about getting my stuff back from them)
at a shop close to here (before i learned to decorate) my mom got a 3 tier wedding cake (not sure of the sizes anymore, it was awhile back) and they charged $300 for it. Professional cakes just cost more because they have more time and effort put into them.
You are not in competition with grocery stores who mass produce the same designs.
Yes your cakes are priced perfectly, I need to order about 100 for this weekend and I need a discount! please!
mpc
You deffinately need to charge more that is only about £5-£8 and that is definately cheap would'nt even get you a shop brought cake here in england. I don't go under £25 for an 8inch cake. and i still sometimes ask for boards and boxes back. Boxes i charge an extra £3 for.
X
Have you really priced out what your ingredients cost? I can't imagine that you are not losing money on your $8 cake, even if you're making a standard cake mix with nothing added except eggs, oil and water. Right there is at least (really at the very least - $2), then add in one bag of p. sugar (about $1.25), Crisco (another $1 - more if butter instead of Crisco), flavoring or vanilla (probably about $.25 if simple extract). That's assuming you're not using any filling other than bc and that you're going with the most simple recipes. Maybe you use meringue powder? Maybe you do a simple syrup on your cakes? If not, you're in for $4.50 above.
You've got to package your cake somehow - a cake board is probably $.50 and if you use a box you add on another $.50 - $1.00. Plus any foil, wax paper or saran you use in the whole process.
So we're at about $5.50 now.
Then there is your mixer, oven and dishwasher's electricity to think about. And then there is water to consider. And gas driving to the store to pick up what you need. I have no idea how to guesstimate these things, but you have got to be around $7 or $8 right there.
You've got to raise your prices if you value what you're doing and your time. You are worth more than a (possible) marginal profit of $1 or $2!
Christy
As for the pooh cake 1 you are not allowed to sale a cake make from one of those pans they are copy written. 2 if you have a a haft sheet pan and a 6" you could carve him out of that and not have to by a pan. just a thought as for cost i have only made one "pooh bear" type cake but it was carved like i said and i charged $50 even that was not enough but hard to charge people a lot when they know you are going to school to be a pastry chef they think you should be cheap ![/quote]
What's this about? Are you saying that Wilton's character pans are not copy written?
Have you really priced out what your ingredients cost? I can't imagine that you are not losing money on your $8 cake, even if you're making a standard cake mix with nothing added except eggs, oil and water. Right there is at least (really at the very least - $2), then add in one bag of p. sugar (about $1.25), Crisco (another $1 - more if butter instead of Crisco), flavoring or vanilla (probably about $.25 if simple extract). That's assuming you're not using any filling other than bc and that you're going with the most simple recipes. Maybe you use ? Maybe you do a simple syrup on your cakes? If not, you're in for $4.50 above.
You've got to package your cake somehow - a cake board is probably $.50 and if you use a box you add on another $.50 - $1.00. Plus any foil, wax paper or saran you use in the whole process.
So we're at about $5.50 now.
Then there is your mixer, oven and dishwasher's electricity to think about. And then there is water to consider. And gas driving to the store to pick up what you need. I have no idea how to guesstimate these things, but you have got to be around $7 or $8 right there.
You've got to raise your prices if you value what you're doing and your time. You are worth more than a (possible) marginal profit of $1 or $2!
Christy
I really think people don't price out things thoroughly at all. Most of us don't bulk order items we don' thave enough business to bulk order or not the storage to keep it. I know some bakers buy the cheapest ingredients they can find, but some of us buy quality ingredients which is even higher.
But I REALLY think people don't figure in the cost of those "little" things - food coloring, the dusts (if used) vanilla and then equipment costs to run and even buy. Now, if you are using equipment you would have stocked in your kitchen anyway, then the price of that equipment isn't really "extra". The electicity is, but not the equipment, but I think a LOT of us buy extra tools/supplies to make our lives easier, but most don't figure that into their costs... count you decorator bags, your turntable, your tips, your smoothing tools, fondant tools, and super deluxe mixer and then see how much you SPEND on making cakes. I dont know what the formula is for figuring out equipment costs, but i suppose that you should be able to pay off equipment within two years of selling if you were a business for smaller appliances??? (Anyone know).
Would you EVER be able to pay of a fancy mixer if you charge $8 an 8" round?
I know I figured the costs for me to make an organic two layer 8" round cakes with all factors included and it's around $15, about $20 for European cakes as they use SOOOO many eggs and nuts typically. A typical cake takes about 3 hours of labor. So, I'm making $10 an hour if I charge $45 for a double layer cake and that's my guess of what a cake decorator earns too in our area - could be wrong, but I value my time!!!
Melissa
As for the pooh cake 1 you are not allowed to sale a cake make from one of those pans they are copy written. 2 if you have a a haft sheet pan and a 6" you could carve him out of that and not have to by a pan. just a thought as for cost i have only made one "pooh bear" type cake but it was carved like i said and i charged $50 even that was not enough but hard to charge people a lot when they know you are going to school to be a pastry chef they think you should be cheap
!
What's this about? Are you saying that Wilton's character pans are not copy written?[/quote]
Actually you can't sell a cake made in a character pan OR a carved character cake! The only character cakes you can sell will have the plastic cake kits on them.
As for the pooh cake 1 you are not allowed to sale a cake make from one of those pans they are copy written. 2 if you have a a haft sheet pan and a 6" you could carve him out of that and not have to by a pan. just a thought as for cost i have only made one "pooh bear" type cake but it was carved like i said and i charged $50 even that was not enough but hard to charge people a lot when they know you are going to school to be a pastry chef they think you should be cheap
!What's this about? Are you saying that Wilton's character pans are not copy written?
Actually you can't sell a cake made in a character pan OR a carved character cake! The only character cakes you can sell will have the plastic cake kits on them.[/quote]
I don't understand, why?
jguilbeau
Because they are copyrighted. Disney owns the rights to all images of the Princesses, for example. They have the right to make sure no one else makes a profit of off them and that no one uses them in a way that distorts the image.
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